Two adults, five children die in two drowning accidents

BẮC GIANG — Four people drowned on Sunday while picking apples near a pond in a garden in Bắc Giang Provice’s Hiệp Hòa District.

Đỗ Xuân Hồng, chairman of Đông Lỗ Commune, said the relevant authorities and local residents rushed to the scene as soon as they were informed of the incident.

According to the local authorities, two students, aged six and eight years, together with their father on Sunday visited relatives in Đông Lỗ Commune.

After lunch, Nguyễn Văn Sơn, 31, took his children to the relatives’ garden to pick apples. He saw a boat near a pond, measuring 2m deep and 1,000sq.m. wide, and put his children in it. The boat overturned abruptly, and all three of them fell into the pond.

Nguyễn Văn Hòa, 45, Sơn’s relative, jumped into the pond to rescue Sơn and his children but to no avail.

Another tragic drowning occurred at around 5pm on Saturday in the southern province of Đồng Tháp, leaving three children dead.

The victims were identified as Trần Như Ý, 6, Trần Văn Thuận, 5, and Trần Thị Thảo, 3. They were siblings living in Hồng Ngự Township.

Some local residents reported they had previously seen the three children playing near the canal, but they had later disappeared.

At 5.30pm, a local ferry driver passing the area discovered Thảo’s body. He informed local authorities and rushed back to find the remaining children.

After one day of searching, the remains of the other two children were found. – VNS